From Pirkei DeRabbi Eliezer we learn of the coat that Nimrod used to become a mighty hunter “Rabbi Jehudah said: The coats which the Holy One, blessed be He, made for Adam and his wife, were with Noah in the ark, and when they went forth from the ark, Ham, the son of Noah, brought them forth with him, and gave them as an inheritance to Nimrod. When he put them on, all beasts, animals, and birds, when they saw the coats, came and prostrated themselves before him. The sons of men thought that this (was due) to the power of his might; therefore they made him king over themselves, as it is said, "Wherefore it is said, Like Nimrod, a mighty hunter before the Lord" (Gen. 10:9).”1
This story of the coat, or cloak of Nimrod becomes important to the final days of Nimrod’s life, being the string that binds his destiny together. Having first passed down from Adam and Eve to eventually come into the possession of Noah, this coat is eventually stolen by Ham, who gives it to his firstborn Cush. In fact Cush directly skips Nimrod’s brothers, giving them to Nimrod himself almost like secret mystical wisdom. Effectively it was due to this coat that Nimrod was seen as powerful before both man and beast, not really due to his own greatness, and ultimately the coat was stolen by Ham through an act of treachery.
Enter Esau, another mighty hunter, where from the Sefer HaYashar Toldot we learn of his aggression toward Nimrod and eventual battle. The story is quite long, but important to wrap up Nimrod’s life. The entire story will be presented below.
“And after the death of Abraham, Esau went very often to hunt in the field. And Nimrod, king of Babel, whose name was Amraphel, went likewise very frequently with his great men to hunt in the field, and to walk about with them in the cool of the day. And Nimrod kept close watch concerning Esau, for Nimrod's heart was filled with jealousy against Esau all the time.
And it was on a certain day that Esau went into the field to hunt and he met Nimrod with his two men walking about in the wilderness; for his great men and all his people were with him in the wilderness, but they separated from him going into the distance to hunt in different directions, and Esau had hidden himself laying in wait for Nimrod in the wilderness. And Nimrod and his men with him knew nothing of Esau and they strolled to and fro in the field at the cool of day, to ascertain whither his men had gone to hunt in the field. And when Nimrod with his two men came near to the hiding place, Esau suddenly jumped towards them from his ambuscade, and drawing his sword he ran to Nimrod and cut off his head. And a desperate struggle ensued between Esau and the two men that were with Nimrod, and they yelled terribly at Esau; when Esau turned suddenly upon them smiting them to death with his sword.
And all the great men of Nimrod, who were out hunting with Nimrod in the wilderness, when they heard the terrible yelling recognized at once the voices of those two men, and they hastened to ascertain the cause thereof, and behold the king and the two men that were with him lay dead in the wilderness. And when Esau saw from a distance the mighty men of Nimrod coming towards him, he fled and escaped; and Esau took along with him the costly garments of Nimrod, bequeathed to Nimrod by his father, and by virtue of which garments Nimrod prevailed over all the people of the earth; and Esau ran hastily and concealed those garments in his house.
And Esau ran very swiftly with those garments. towards the city, to escape Nimrod's men, and when he reached his father's house Esau was wearied and exhausted and almost dead with excitement, as he approached his brother, Jacob, and sat down before him; and he said unto his brother Jacob: Behold, I shall surely die this day, and what profit shall this birthright do to me? And Jacob acted cunningly with Esau in this matter, and Esau sold his birthright unto Jacob, for thus it was the pleasure of the Lord. And the share of Esau in the cave, which is in the field of Machpelah which Abraham had bought from the Hittites for the possession of a burying place, Esau sold unto Jacob likewise, and Jacob became the owner thereof for a consideration. And Jacob wrote down the whole transaction in a book, and he had it testified to by witnesses and he annexed a seal thereto, and the book remained in Jacob’s possession.
And when Nimrod, the son of Cush, was dead, his men took him up and carried him away midst great consternation, and they buried him in his city. And all the days that Nimrod lived were two hundred and fifteen years when he died, and the days of his reigning over the people of the earth were one hundred and eighty five years. Thus Nimrod died by the sword of Esau in shame and disgrace, and his death was caused by the seed of Abraham, as he himself foresaw it in his dreams. And after Nimrod's death his kingdom became divided into many provinces, and all the countries ruled over by Nimrod were restored to their previous kings who recovered them after Nimrod's death. And all the people of Nimrod's household were enslaved for many days by the other kings of the earth.”2
The first part of the story opens with the relationship between Esau and Nimrod, under the name Amraphel. We learn how the two frequently hunted in the same field, showing an almost geographic rivalry for territory. Next we learn of a plot where Esau ambushed Nimrod, cutting off his head and smiting his two bodyguards. In effect, Esau actually ‘hunts’ Nimrod, and even cuts his head off in a fashion identical to the later death of Esau, whose head is almost cut off.
The story then deviates to discuss Esau fleeing from the scene of the crime with the magical garments of Nimrod in hand. We then are told of Jacob, who actually seizes the opportunity to take the birthright from Esau in his moment of desperation. Given the situation, the story might not be accurate since it seems to imply Esau was manipulated, and taken advantage of by Jacob to a greater degree than would seem fitting of a righteous man like Jacob. Surely, he could have saved Esau if need be, so why the cunning? Sadly this book written by Jacob doesn’t come down to us, but such a contract and deed might shed some light into Esau’s perspective and why the contract stayed valid.
Finally the story closes with the funeral of Nimrod, seemingly a massive event in the ancient world, with his tomb having been actually in ‘his city’, seemingly Babylon. He lived over 215 years, and reigned over the empire for 185 years making this ten years longer than the total life of Abraham! An interesting number that implies the total lifetime of Abraham was lived under Nimrod, and this kingdom. Given that the ‘seed of Abraham’ is what exterminates Nimrod, this is a fitting numerical metric that might have deeper meaning within Gematria.
The text then finishes by explaining the dividing of his kingdom, but there is a struggle with this timeframe. Was Nimrod’s kingdom destroyed at the end of his reign? Was it ‘divided into many provinces’ after his death? It even continues saying that the previous kings are restored to their rule, which seems at odds with the fact Nimrod lived over 215 years. How did they even survive that period? Furthermore, when was Babel divided and did this occur within Nimrod’s lifetime, or prior? The line really makes no sense, and given the Sefer HaYashar is a much later medieval fabrication I might discount much of this story if not for the Rabbinic provenance of Esau’s defeat of Nimrod, and passing of the magical garments of Adam and Eve onto Edom, and thus eventually into what would be Rome, the world's next unifying empire.
Pirkei DeRabbi Eliezer 24:4
Sefer HaYashar Toldot 3-4